Whether your sales have hit a plateau or you’ve seen them dip in the past couple of months, you’re probably looking for ways to improve your bottom line in the coming year. After all, who doesn’t want to sell more and make a better profit? You might have experienced a little slowdown, but you can still make a profit if you follow these three easy steps.

Get Feedback

Whether you seek out an outside consultant to tell you what works and what doesn’t about your showroom, your sales strategies, and your service department, you can always benefit from feedback. Put out a suggestion box and encourage your staff and your customers to give you suggestions and comments.

You can also send your recent customers surveys to fill out about their experience. They’ll be a lot more likely to fill these out if there’s incentive to do so, though. You can make them part of a deal. Say, they get 25% off of their next oil change or wheel alignment when they bring they complete a survey.

Listen

It’s not enough to just get feedback. You could have all of the surveys and suggestions in the world, but they won’t do anything for you if you don’t pay attention to what they have to say. Pay attention to negative reviews as much as positive reviews so that you know what you need to improve, but don’t ignore the positive, either.

When your staff gets a glowing review, bring it up in the next staff meeting. Give credit where credit is due. Encouraging your employees to make suggestions and recommendations gives them ownership, which will, in turn, encourage them to work harder and better for you.

Never Stop Improving

Someone once said, “You’re either improving, or you’re declining.” The idea is that treading water doesn’t do you any good. If you think you’re just maintaining, then you’re actually more likely in decline. If you’re always trying to improve, you can’t lose.

Keep listening to your customers and employees. Give them incentives for great performance and gentle direction for improvement. Be present with your employees, but don’t micromanage them. If you follow the three simple steps listed here, you’ll be sure to see improvements in your car dealership in no time. Keep in mind, though, these aren’t bandages to put on a wound, and they’re not quick fixes. These are changes you need to make and continue to utilize for the rest of your dealership’s life.